


The Separation Between Clouds and Mud

by january_sunshine



Category: Free!
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, M/M, Medical School, Sickfic, fake it til you make it
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-08-24
Updated: 2014-08-24
Packaged: 2018-02-14 14:21:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,069
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2195037
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/january_sunshine/pseuds/january_sunshine
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>One trip to the Student Wellness center introduced Nagisa to a gorgeous, bespectacled third-year med student, and Nagisa begins finding creative ways to meet him. But how can he get the attention of someone so very different than him?</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Separation Between Clouds and Mud

Colds were no fun, especially when they occurred during flu season and double-especially when one had a paper due the next morning. Hazuki Nagisa needed to finish this overly boring and tedious task of the importance of rice in his Economic History of Pre-Modern Japan, a class he didn't even like to _begin_  with, but it was ten times more tolerable when he wasn't feeling overheated and dizzy. He hadn't even slept for a majority of the night, still perched in the common room of his dorm for the evening with his fingers typing away at a small pink laptop.

One of his hallmates and the kindest dorm brother ever brought him water. With a worried smile, Tachibana Makoto sat in a chair next to him as he placed the bottle on the table.

"Nagisa, have you thought of just emailing your professor for an extension?" he asked. "You really don't look well."

With a small grimace, Nagisa turned to look at him, shaking his head. "It's _Hideki_ , Mako-chan," he explained. "If it was Ama-chan-sensei, she'd give me a week extension on everything, but Hideki-sensei... He wouldn't even give it to you if you're in a coma."

Makoto sighed. "That was a rumor, Nagisa. The boy wasn't actually in a coma, and Professor Hideki didn't even _know_  he was in the hospital." It had been a fairly well-known rumor around campus, of how the one professor hounded the comatose student for not turning in an essay, when in fact the student received a three-week extension and had only had a concussion. But of course, at a school as lively and chatty as theirs, it wasn't surprising that such a dramatic rumor had spread to unbelievable proportions. It also didn't help that the professor was rather unforgiving by nature.

But even with the truth, Nagisa refused to budge. Makoto sighed, just reaching over to touch Nagisa's cheek once the younger man began to type again.

"I'm worried about this fever of yours, Nagisa," he said softly. "At least take a nap, or let me give you something for it."

"No! Medicine makes me _sleepy_!"

And that was it. Makoto brought him some anyway, in the form of two tablets in a plastic casing, and suggested he take them when he finished. But, given that it was already well past three in the morning, he wished the blonde luck and turned in for the night.

Thus began _the most boring five hours_  of Hazuki Nagisa's life.

 

\--

 

He didn't want to eat rice again. No rice pudding, no riceballs, not even rice liquor. The paper had been finished at approximately 7:47 AM. He spent the next twenty minutes staring emptily through the study room's windows at the morning gradient. By 8:10, he dragged himself to the computer lab, where he had the most dramatic fight for printer paper that he had ever had in all of his three years of University. And, surprisingly enough, as his paper printed, crisp and neatly, by 8:38, he managed to race to class and arrive on time.

"You look horrible, Hazuki-san," chimed a voice from Nagisa's left.

Without even turning around, he whined. He felt even more like death, to be honest. Whatever was plaguing him didn't go away, especially on a night of no rest. Nitori Aiichiro, affectionately dubbed 'Ai' or 'Ai-chan' by the rambunctious blonde, one of his most observant buddies, tapped him on the shoulder.

"I'll turn your paper in for you if you want," he said softly. "You should probably go back to your room, or the health center."

Nagisa groaned into his desk. "But I'm already heeeeere. I might as well turn it in myself!"

"I suppose that's true... But you should go right after," he amended. "Really, if you want to just sneak out before Hideki gets here--"

It was exactly 9:00 and the door slid open. The chatter muted itself almost immediately as a tall professor with sandy hair stared directly at the class. After a few seconds, he crossed his arms. "Papers on the desk, and then you may go."

Aiichiro and Nagisa exchanged grins before joining the mass of students hurrying to the front. As the crowd began to form a disorganized line towards the desk, Nagisa leaned against Aiichiro , sighing softly. "I'm skipping the rest of the day," he mumbled.

"You should... Hazuki-san, you feel really warm. Like... fever-warm. Have you checked?"

Nagisa shook his head, pushing away from Aiichiro. "It's probably nothing a bit of sleep won't cure."

But that didn't stop Aiichiro's worrying. Since class was canceled, he had an hour and a half of pestering Nagisa before meeting his Anatomy study partner. And bother he did; when Nagisa tilted dangerously on the way back to the dorm, Aiichiro decided they were changing direction. There was obvious whining from Nagisa's part, along with worried scolding from Aiichiro's, but a ten-minute stroll had them in front of the Student Wellness Center.

Finally, Nagisa's mind kicked into gear, and he shook his head. "N-no, I can just sleep it off!" he protested.

Aiichiro pushed him inside.

 

\--

 

The Student Wellness Center was an interactive learning clinic. Many of the nurses and on-staff intake clinicians performing brief wellness checks and assisting with colds were third- and fourth-year pre-med students at the Medical College of the university. Most worked the various desk jobs, organizing papers and answering phones, but they also cycled in shadowing physicians and checking vitals. After signing in and answering a few preliminary questions on his reason for being there, he sat with Aiichiro in the waiting room, whining in a soft whisper and pushing his friend in complete displeasure. Nagisa was a firm believer in Sleep Cures Everything and was quite certain that an aspirin, some juice, and a long nap would take care of him just fine. But given that Aiichiro was a worry-wart, there was no escaping it.

Thankfully they were quick about the entire process, and Nagisa spent all of two minutes waiting before one of the student nurses called him over. A tall, thin young man with neat, dark hair stood before him, crimson spectacles framing soft amethyst eyes. He didn't look overly pleased, but he didn't seem miserable in the least.

"Stand on the scale please, Hazuki-san," he said calmly as the blonde arrived before him.

"Ah... Right." Dropping his bag from his shoulder, Nagisa stepped on the small scale, but only a few seconds of being upright had him tilting almost dangerously onto the young man before him. He could feel strong arms encircling him, gently easing him downward. The movement had him pulled closer, shoulder pressed against a bright blue tie.

"--Hazuki-san! Can you hear me? Please, Hazuki-san, stay with me!"

Nagisa smiled, albeit weak. "Ah... S-sorry! I guess I tripped," he whispered. He didn't make a notion to move, almost too stunned to be in this embrace. Once he felt himself seated sturdily on the ground, the young man before him... shone a light right into his right eye. "Augh! Hey, don't blind me!" Nagisa immediately felt himself wake up with that, and he tried to fight away the light in the other's hand. All the taller boy did was move his hand out of the way as Nagisa's approached, one hand on the side of his face, gently lifting his eyelid to assault it further with the light stick.

He then moved his hand to Nagisa's other eye, and Nagisa just whined. "You're being _meeeean_!"

"Eh?! Y-you collapsed! I'm trying to make sure you--"

"--get blinded by a flashing light, that's what!" Nagisa looked up, and his eyes caught sight of the badge clipped to the boy's breast pocket. Something-sparkle-light dots-- _Ryugazaki Rei_.

"Rei-chan, you're so mean!"

"Eh?!" Momentarily stunned by the sudden name usage, he just stood, a hand outstretched. "First, I'm _not_  mean. Second, can you stand?"

"That only comes second?" Nagisa asked, although he took Rei's hand with both of his and allowed the student to help him to his feet. Oddly enough, he did find himself a little unsteady, and Rei seemed to have no intention of letting him go. Abandoning the clipboard on the floor, he just wrapped an arm around Nagisa's back and looked down. Nagisa could feel Rei pulling his other hand around his shoulders. Supporting him.

"We'll move slowly."

It hadn't even been two minutes before Nagisa found himself entering exam room three, grimacing at the horribly-angled light as he wormed his way onto the exam bench. Rei pulled the small leg extender outward and assisted in bringing his legs up to rest on them.

"Lay down for a little," he instructed; "I'm going to check your vitals, then call for the doctor."

"Oki-doki, Rei-chan!" Nagisa chirped, although his eyes closed as he said so. Even without his sight, he could still tell what the young intern was doing. Two thin, cool fingers pressed against his neck, and he could hear hushed counting for a few seconds.

"Hmm... Pulse is a little high, but not by much. Do you still feel light-headed? Dizzy?"

He mumbled a little, then waved a hand. "Not dizzy, but I am kinda light-headed. Ne, ne, Rei-chan, are all doctors mean? All my doctors were mean."

Rei sighed. "The doctors aren't mean," he replied softly. "If you cooperate, perhaps you'll even leave with a lollipop."

And at that, Nagisa's eyes opened and he grinned. "Promise?"

"Certainly. I'll deliver it personally." He stepped away, moving to the wall to collect the electronic thermometer. Upon sliding the plastic sheet over the probe, he held it forward. "Open, please. Place this under your tongue."

Nagisa obliged, bright eyes staring right at Rei as he waited for the few seconds to pass. The young doctor in training was actually a rather handsome gentleman, if not a little plain. His hairstyle looked like it belonged on a young and upcoming businessman, and outside of his red frames, he didn't look like he had any special flair to him at all. But he was probably really good at reading. Yeah, definitely looked like the reading type--

_Beep!_

Parting his lips, he allowed for Rei to remove the thermometer, tilting his head as he watched the young doctor move towards the trash can. He clicked out the plastic covering, then returned the thermometer to the wall.

"Well, you do have a slight fever, 37.8º. Any other symptoms? Coughing, mucous, vomiting?"

And those cold hands returned to his heated flesh as Rei gently placed two fingers on either side of his jaw line, pressing gently as if feeling for something. It was actually pretty nice, and Nagisa gave him a tired smile.

"Nuh-uh. Just sleepy..."

"Mm. Well, nothing seems to be swollen, either. Just rest here, the doctor will be in shortly. Would you like any water?"

Nagisa's smile only grew. "You're really nice, Rei-chan."

That seemed to have flustered the young man, and he moved his hands away, patting Nagisa on the shoulder. "Alright. One moment, then."

And he seemed to all but scurry from the room. It had the blonde laughing.

 

  
\--

 

  
"He looks like a nerd but he's really nice," Nagisa mumbled against Aiichiro's shoulder as his roommate helped him back to the dorms. It was a simple case of exhaustion and a mild cold, and Nagisa was under orders to rest and stay hydrated until his fever went down, with a small prescription to assist. It wouldn't be too hard at this point, since his paper was done and he had no tests in his other classes for the rest of the week. No studying for him!

"Nagisa, perhaps you should save your energy," Aiichiro said softly. "Talking with such exhausted speech, you sound rather intoxicated."

"But I'm not drunk!" Nagisa lifted his head, but it soon fell right back to Ai's shoulder and he groaned.

Aiichiro sighed. "Come on..."

It was a very taxing ten minutes, but soon Nagisa found himself back in his first-floor dorm room with Aiichiro helping him into his bed and covering him up. His shoes, which had somehow ended up off his feet, were soon deposited into his storage bucket of shoes (also known as his misplaced laundry bucket), and Aiichiro ran off with the excuse of making him some tea. Without waiting, Nagisa curled in on his pillow and plush penguin and was out like a light.


End file.
